5
Noah
Thursday nights are meant to be relaxing.
I work four tens, which means Friday kicks off my weekend. The list of to-dos this weekend is extensive, and I should get a head start, but instead I’m on the sidewalk outside of Riley’s.
I promised my buddy Jace I’d come into the bar tonight. His family has owned it for generations, and when his dad decided not to run it anymore, Jace took over. He turned it into the most active evening hangout spot in our little town. It serves as a studying location, a dinner and date spot, and a hang-and-drink kind of place.
As I slip through the door, I register the soothing tones of Johnny Cash playing through the speakers. I pause at the giant bulletin board that has always been a catch-all of sorts to pin a Rental Available card to it.
Weaving through the tables, I make my way to the bar stools at the back. Jace smiles when he sees me. The dude is six-four and built like a linebacker. The teddy bear also cried at the end of Homeward Bound . I met him my first day in Havenwood shortly after settling in at my aunt’s house. The move had been unexpected, but at fifteen, I was already battling demons that couldn’t be slayed if I stayed in Steele Valley.
To say he’d intimidated me would be an understatement. He walked up to me without reason and started talking about root beer floats and asking if I wanted to get one, too. I was more of a keep-to-myself kind of guy, but Jace and his best friend Drew always included me in every situation.
“Dude, what’s got you all smiley and shit? You bang a chick in one of your elevators today or something?” He laughs at his own joke, knowing I’m not one to mess around with random women. Funny, though, how close he is to what I wish had happened.
“What’re you talking about, man?”
“You haven’t quit smiling since you sat down. It’s weird. You’re usually mister grump and misery.”
“Rude.”
“True.” He sets to pouring me a rum and Coke before sliding over a paper coaster and placing the glass on top of it.
I chuckle to myself, wiping a hand over my face to sober my voice. “Had an entrapment during that band of storms this morning. There was a woman in it, alone. Probably a few years younger than me.”
Jace’s eyes light with amusement at the realization that his theory at least holds some merit.
“Noah, man. I was kidding about shacking up. Tell me you didn’t.”
I full on belly laugh at that. “No, Jace. I did not shack up with the girl I rescued. But I am still kicking myself for not getting her name. She looked a little familiar, but I know I’d have remembered this one.”
“Let me guess. Brunette. Green eyes. An ass and some sass.”
“Are you serious right now, bud?”
“You have a type, bud .” He grins, nodding over my shoulder at someone.
I realize a moment later that it is the third to our friend group when Jace yells out a greeting.
“Yo, Drew. Green-eyed beauty with brown hair and an ass. Who’s gettin’ her?”
Drew slides onto the stool next to me, a twitch of his lip the only sign of humor. “Definitely not yours, Jacey-Boy.”
Jace jokingly whips his towel at Drew, but his eyes hold a hint of worry like they usually do these days. Something happened to Drew a few months back, but none of us know what. Drew went out of town with his brother and came back closed off. Neither brother would spill, but the rift in their relationship is still prominent. Things have continued to worsen since Drew’s accident shortly after their return. He fractured his back and collarbone and has a shit ton of shoulder damage.
A look at my face has Jace backtracking. “You know I’m just pullin’ your leg, right, Noah?”
I wave him off. “No worries, man.”
The teasing is nice after so many days, months, years of not taking an interest in anyone. I should run the other way from any thoughts of another relationship. I couldn’t protect anyone three years ago, and nothing has changed.
Jace studies me for a moment longer before looking back at Drew. “You quit using your braces, now?” he asks immediately after noticing the black straps are absent.
Drew blows off both the question and the concern, asking, “Where’s your twin?”
Jace nods toward the back. “Kelsey is doing inventory, so you’re shit outta luck, bud. She’s already been told not to pour you anything but water tonight.” Jace slides a can of soda over to him. “Jack and Coke, hold the Jack.”
Drew rolls his eyes but doesn’t fight the drink choice. “You think you’re cute, huh?”
Jace offers a cheeky grin. “The ladies seem to think so.”
I almost comment on the fact that Jace has cut Drew off before he’s even started, but my words falter as movement at the far end of the bar catches my eye. I swat my hand excitedly at Jace’s arm and whisper harshly, “That’s her, man. That’s the girl from my entrapment call.”
How lucky could I be that she’d show up here, of all places? This town doesn’t get visitors, so what’s she doing here? Drew looks confused, and I can’t blame the guy; he missed that part of the conversation.
“Shit,” Jace mutters before he saunters to the other side of the bar, and I can hear the girl’s soft voice.
“Double shot of Red Stag, please.” Leggings hug her ass and thighs, and the same sweatshirt from that morning sits lopsided on her shoulders. A twisted mess of a braid hangs over her shoulder. The low lighting of the bar does nothing to hide her tear-streaked cheeks, and the sight of those tracks does strange things to my heart that I don’t want to acknowledge.
Because Jace is right.
I am not the type of guy to hook up with a random girl. I’d always prided myself on being a relationship guy, but I swore those off a few years ago after tragedy struck our little town. It’s just me and Sadie these days. She is the only girl I need in my life. Loyal to a fault and always up for snuggles without the baggage.
But something about this girl—natural beauty, not trying to impress anyone—has been tugging at my heartstrings since our encounter.
Jace pours the double shot she requested without question, and something about my mystery girl shooting her shot without so much as a wince before putting the glass in front of Jace, saying, “another,” and repeating the process cuts through some more of the barbed wire around the ticker in my chest. When she tries for a third shot, Jace shakes his head.
Good. Otherwise, I would have found myself overstepping on a stranger’s drinking habits.
“Food first. Last time you came in, you swore you had eaten then nearly passed out on my bar.” He drops his voice so I can’t hear what he says next, but his eyes cut to me.
I vaguely register Drew’s arm reaching over to the back side of the bar and grabbing the discarded whiskey bottle, pouring some directly into his Coke can, and returning the bottle. I’ll try to remember to question Jace later. Before I can convince myself of what a terrible idea it might be, I stand and make my way over.
“You followin’ me now?” I ask as I slip onto the barstool next to her.
She jumps, startled. Her wide eyes trail up to my face slowly. When she finally makes eye contact, surprise lights her face and a touch of a smile graces her lips, but both are gone in a flash, washed out by the red rimming her eyes.
“I guess this makes you the sexy elevator man my new therapist told me about.”
I chuckle. “Don’t think I want to know why you and Drew’s sister-in-law were talking about me.” Before I can stop myself, I reach up to wipe away some of the remaining dampness left by her tears. “Sexy, huh?”
She lets out a short laugh at that, but the humor doesn’t reach her eyes. “Wasn’t expecting it to be my elevator man when I jokingly asked if there were any around here.”
I shake my head, but I can’t keep the sheer satisfaction at her innocent claim from affecting me. “ Your elevator man, huh? And you think I’m sexy. My ego thanks you for that boost.”
That earns me a slightly more noticeable grin, but she tucks her chin and snags a fry from the basket Jace set in front of her.
“Noah,” I introduce before fighting the urge to smack myself in the face.
She knows your name, dumbass.
Still, I hold my hand out to her. She hesitates for a second before dusting salt from her fingers and placing her hand in mine. Such tiny, soft hands.
“Jett.”
“That’s different.”
“I’m different.”
That you are , I think.
Before I can say more, Jace interrupts. His eyes burn a hole into mine as he says, “You eating this here, Jett, or you takin’ it back to Reece’s house?”
She blows a piece of hair that has loosed itself from her braid and sighs heavily. “Brother bear already called looking for me?”
“Yep,” Jace says, popping the P.
“Guess I’m heading back there, then. Can you pack it up for me, please?”
I’m not used to the heavy feeling of disappointment pressing down on me simply because someone is leaving. I look out the door and curse to myself as I realize how late it’s gotten. “You good to drive there? It’s getting dark out, and I just watched you down two doubles like they were nothing.”
“My brother’s place is right down the road. It’s lighted all the way there, and I never even have to step off the sidewalk.”
Try as I might, I can’t keep the exasperation out of my voice. “You’re walking home? It’s forty degrees out and the sun’ll be down before you get off Main Street.”
“What’s the matter, elevator man? Worried you won’t get to see me again?”
A playful look creeps into her eyes, drawing me in. I do not want this girl to walk out of here. Not because the people of Havenwood aren’t trustworthy—this town is built around family—but because I know how quickly things can go from safe to tragic when the sun goes down.
And maybe she is right. What if I don’t see her again?
I refuse to dig deeper into that thought.
“Let me walk you home?” I ask, seeing the steely determination within her. The playfulness is still there, but something else sits on the edge.
“I don’t even know your last name. How could I possibly trust that you aren’t trying to lure me away to a remote location to have your way with me before offing me and positioning my body to fill some crazed murder fantasy of yours?”
A chuckle rumbles through my chest, even with the tension I feel at the thought of her walking out of this bar alone. “You definitely have an active imagination, chaos.”
Although, part of her statement is spot on. I’d love to lure her away to fulfill a different type of fantasy if I wasn’t more worried about her on the sidewalk at dusk.
“I appreciate the concern for my safety, Noah. It’s been a pleasure running into you, and while you are a fine specimen to behold, I’ll let you in on a little secret. I am a total shit show and not worth your time. Hot mess central right here.”
She stands from her stool, hands gesturing to herself as Jace appears with the bagged food and a comment about her brother waiting out front for her. Her fists clench for a moment before she lets out another heavy sigh, like the weight of the world is pressing down around her.
Her eyes hold gallons of pain in this moment, and stress lines marring her beautiful face. Gone is the girl who was dishing out novel-worthy plot lines moments ago. In her place is a crumbling shell of the spirited spitfire from the elevator. The urge to touch her, to comfort her, is almost too much.
What the hell is going on with me?
“Let me walk you out, Jett,” I offer, removing the bag from her hand and offering her my other arm.
After a moment’s hesitation, she takes it.
We walk in silence to a silver Ford pickup where Reece Taylor is waiting in the driver’s seat. I try—and fail—to contain my groan. Of course, Reece is her brother. That’s what Jace’s looks were about.
Reece Taylor hates me. I don’t know what I did to him. I do know I am an ass most of the time, but people usually deserve it. I’ve barely spoken to Reece in however many years he has been here, but the glare he’s shooting me right now tells a different story. I tuned out Jace’s warning glance when he’d mentioned Reece by name, but now it’s all too real.
“Jett, as in Jennette Taylor?”
She glances at me, confusion in her eyes. “The one and only disappointment of my mother’s loins. What of it?”
“Nothing, just trying to calculate how long I have before your brother tries to separate me from my favorite body parts.”
That lip twitch comes and goes so fast that I wonder if I imagine it. “He’s harmless, unless you’re me.”
“He hates me.” Even I can hear how pathetic I sound.
“What are you, twelve?” The lip twitch is more prominent this time. “And don’t worry. He strongly dislikes me most days, too.”
“Not twelve, just cautious. Your brother is not someone to mess with. I’ve seen the livestock he wrangles.”
“Good thing you’re not wasting your time with me then, huh?”
I shake my head. “You hang around here long enough, and I bet I can change your mind. I have a feeling you are more than worth my time.”
“Goodbye, Noah.”
When I slip back into the bar, Jace and Drew are in a heated whisper-yell match. By the time I am close enough, all I can hear is what sounds a lot like a threat from Jace.
“—telling Declan if you don’t. This ain’t somethin’ you can handle on your own, brother.”
The knuckles of Drew’s good hand are white with the grip he has on the bar top. I hesitate as Jace catches my eye. Drew’s are glued to the wall past Jace’s shoulder.
“Everything okay?” I ask, not at all sure what I just stepped in.
Drew stands, favoring his left side. The grimace makes even me hurt, and I sling around elevator equipment for a living. My joints are as bad as an eighty-year-old.
“Nothin’ to worry about,” Drew says as he walks stiffly to the door.
I watch him for a moment before looking back at Jace. There’s one giant, polka-dotted elephant in here, and the last thing I want to do is get into a deep conversation after the day I’ve had, but I still voice my concern. “He okay?”
Jace shakes his head but doesn’t make eye contact. “He says the pain’s still killin’ him. If he’s still poppin’ those pain pills, I’m not gonna be responsible for him dousing his innards with alcohol. Drinkin’s what got him in this mess to begin with.”
I shoot a sympathetic glance his way. “He’s always made his own choices, Jace. Alcohol just happens to be one of the less enjoyable ones.”
He levels a glare at me, although I know it isn’t actually at me. “This is where he got drunk before he stumbled to the barn, jumped on an unbroke colt, and ended up underneath it. My best friend nearly died. He’s not touching the alcohol in this place for a long damn time.”
I rub the back of my neck, debating if I should hold back on outing Drew but feeling the weight in Jace’s words. How it is clearly weighing on his conscience. Jace stands a little straighter, intimidating me without saying a word. I’ve retaken my seat, looking guilty.
Wincing, I point at the red soda can still on the bar. “When you were taking Jett’s drink order, he topped off his Coke with whiskey.”
Jace glances at the can then back at me as he lifts it to his nose, takes a whiff, and curses. “Damn him.”
I just nod, not sure what to do with the knowledge he’s dropped on me. Jace sighs, shaking his head before turning to assist another patron a few seats down. When he returns, I can tell he’s switched gears on me. It’s not uncommon. I think it comes with being a bar owner and always having to adjust and shift conversation depending on which patron he is speaking with.
“So, Jett, huh?”
Shaking my head, I say, “You couldn’t have warned me? Like really warned me she was Reece Taylor’s little sister?”
He chuckles. “Honestly, I can’t believe you didn’t know it was her. She comes into town a few times a month. Usually has a rough night somewhere in there and ends up here. Reece checks here first before sending out the hounds. Man, you’re screwed.”
Groaning, I drop forward onto the bar. “It’s not funny, man. That guy hates me, and I know it can’t be anything I did.”
Jace full on belly laughs. “Because you’re such a lovable guy, right? Are you tellin’ me you really don’t know why he hates you?”
“No, I’ve done nothing to him. I swear. I’ve never even had a reason to speak more than a few words to him.”
He stares, clearly not believing me. “Dude, your brother slept with his fiancée. How do you not know this?”
Well, shit.